Five Olympians among 2016 Barbasol Championship field

David Hearn of Canada hits off the second tee during the third round of play at the Canadian Open golf tournament in Oakville, Ontario, on Saturday, July 25, 2015.(Photo: (Paul Chiasson /The Canadian Press via AP File)

OPELIKA – Five players in this season’s Barbasol Championship field are allowing the Auburn-Opelika area to be on their road to Rio de Janeiro.

The second-year PGA Tour event at the Grand National Lake Course on the Robert Trent Jones Trail has five players in the field talking about an upcoming Olympics experience including the entire Team Canada contingent.

Canadians David Hearn and Graham DeLaet along with Alex Cejka from Germany, Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas and Camilo Villegas of Columbia are the players in Opelika, Alabama this week who have qualified for the Olympics next month.

The 2016 Summer Olympics will be the first time for golf to be played at the Olympics since the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis.

Graham DeLaet, of Canada, watches his drive on the 18th hole during the third round of the Travelers Championship golf tournament in Cromwell, Conn., Saturday, June 22, 2013.(Photo: Fred Beckham/AP File Photo)

Despite several of the top players and several of lower ranked worldwide players declining the Olympic bid because of scheduling concerns, the Olympians in the Barbasol Championship are excited for the opportunity.

“I’m thrilled about the whole thing because quite frankly, the opportunity to represent my country in an event is not something I’d be able to experience growing up playing the game,” DeLaet said. “Once I knew I was pretty sure to have a job on tour next year that was it. I knew I was going (to the Olympics).”

Hearn joked after his pro-am practice round Wednesday morning that his home country has a “112-year reputation” to uphold after Canada’s George Lyon won golf’s last gold medal in 1904. Hearn, who said he will participate to walk in the opening ceremony on Aug. 5 and immediately agreed to represent his country.

“We play each and every week on the PGA Tour and I think we gain a lot of respect from golf fans but the Olympics is another stage,” Hearn said. “I’m excited to take in the Olympic culture and be among some other athletes where this will be the pinnacle of their athletic career.”

This picture released by the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games shows the emblem of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Dec. 31, 2010. A multidisciplinary evaluation commission, formed by 12 professionals enjoying domestic and international recognition, was involved in the whole process of the emblem selection.(Photo: Associated Press)